2 dollar question in international shipping

I addressed on my last blog, a shipper wanting to ocean freight inside Burundi, East Africa & I pretty much summed up the shipping scenario up to Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania.

The Second Leg:

This is a land-locked destination via Dar es Salaam port to a city in Burundi East Africa. At first, when we discussed the freight offer with the shipper, we established that the exporter would get their own shipper own container (SOC) versus leasing onefrom the steam line. That we provide it or they get it, it is not a bad idea & since steam lines beyond the destination port do not always let their ocean containers to some remote location with archaic infrastructure or politically unstable. This shipper did not have the resources to deal with aTanzanian clearing agent / freight forwarder. And so, we offer the information without assuming the liabilities to clear & transport to Burundi, as it seems potentially too great of a risk. ETC International Freight System: sales@etcinternational.com

The short version here is we gathered the port charge, Customs clearance, taxes & the inland transportation somewhere in Burundi (final destination withheld for privacy), which was over USD 5000 & they tax 12.3% or so of the invoice value. You can refer to my earlier blog for the shipping figures to Dar es Salaam.

The Third Leg:

Yes, there is such a thing! The consignee, in this case a church is responsible for unloading the content of the container. If the consignee wants his SOC, they will have to retrieve the ocean container off the truck chassis.

This shipment of relief goods is small, but interesting to a forwarder because of its multi-layers& other aspects that possibly can spin out of control. Customs inspection & storage can never be anticipated.

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We bring you port or shipping developments, which often time gravitate around the same topics. Here is a story we picked-up from JOC.com, which humanizes the good people working on the ship delivering thousands of container per trip, way from weeks at the time.

From JOC

While much of the international trade community is focused, and rightfully so, on the current status of waterfront contract negotiations, not noticed and certainly not recognized by the trade community is the importance of the work performed by seafarers. The job is dangerous and separates men and women from their families for long periods of time. Filling some of the needs of these hard-working individuals are seafarer centers at various ports around the country. These centers provide a variety of services, from providing means for seafarers to communicate with loved ones at home to providing meals, transportation to go shopping and counseling or pastoral services for those in need. These organizations are inter-faith, operatelong hours to accommodate vessel schedules and succeed based on countless volunteers who generously offer their time for organizations that operate on limited budgets.

The seafarer centers around the country deserve not just the maritime industry’s support, but the support of the entire supply chain. It’s one thing to focus on the outcome of waterfront contract negotiations when wondering about the delivery of a particular shipment. It’salso important to acknowledge that a seafarer worked long hours and in difficult seas to get cargo to the dock in the first place. It’s time the entire supply chain recognized the importance of those that work on ships and support seafarer centers around the country, which provide mariners much-needed help, support and care.

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